I have a recipe for a fruit cake that uses 2lb of mixed fruit plus 11oz currants and 15oz raisins
In the UK, mixed dried fruit is usually a mixture of sultanas, raisins, currants, and chopped candied peel, with little variation. If it is the same in America then I don't understand the addition of more currants and raisins, which would work only to halve the proportion of candied peel and sultanas
Is mixed dried fruit composed differently in the US?
From a Google search, I found several brands of mixed dry fruits available in the US. Some do contain raisins and/or currants, but not most. Typically, they contain apricots, apples, peaches, plums, pears and sometimes nectarines. Like This
Even UK recipes do this. See for example the Christmas cake recipe in Fast cakes by Mary Berry. And UK mixed dried fruit is quite variable (the cheapest is mostly currants, peel is optional and listed on the front of the packet, you get more exotic fruit like pineapple and papaya in the more expensive packs).
The reason for mixed fruit plus raisins (or currants) is to make a mix that's mainly raisins whatever the mixed fruit is. I don't tend to use currants but always have raisins on the go, so would replace the currants with raisins without a thought. I also go for the correct total of dried fruit with a minimum of open packets at the end. Small changes in the proportions don't make a big difference to the end result.
